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Background: Owing to the cytotoxic effect, it is challenging for clinicians to decide whether post-operative adjuvant therapy is appropriate for a non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patient. Radiomics has proven its promising ability in predicting survival but research on its actionable model, particularly for supporting the decision of adjuvant therapy, is limited., Methods: Pre-operative contrast-enhanced CT images of 123 NSCLC cases were collected, including 76, 13, 16, and 18 cases from R01 and AMC cohorts of The Cancer Imaging Archive (TCIA), Jiangxi Cancer Hospital and Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital respectively. From each tumor region, 851 radiomic features were extracted and two augmented features were derived therewith to estimate the likelihood of adjuvant therapy. Both Cox regression and machine learning models with the selected main and interaction effects of 853 features were trained using 76 cases from R01 cohort, and their test performances on survival prediction were compared using 47 cases from the AMC cohort and two hospitals. For those cases where adjuvant therapy was unnecessary, recommendations on adjuvant therapy were made again by the outperforming model and compared with those by IBM Watson for Oncology (WFO)., Results: The Cox model outperformed the machine learning model in predicting survival on the test set (C-Index: 0.765 vs. 0.675). The Cox model consists of 5 predictors, interestingly 4 of which are interactions with augmented features facilitating the modulation of adjuvant therapy option. While WFO recommended no adjuvant therapy for only 13.6% of cases that received unnecessary adjuvant therapy, the same recommendations by the identified Cox model were extended to 54.5% of cases (McNemar's test p = 0.0003)., Conclusions: A Cox model with radiomic and augmented features could predict survival accurately and support the decision of adjuvant therapy for bettering the benefit of NSCLC patients., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Chan, Ding, Shao, Huang, Hui, Cho, Wong, Tong, Chiu, Huang and Zhou.)

Background: The purpose of this registry-based retrospective study was to investigate the risk factors related to one-year mortality in displaced intracapsular fragility hip fracture patients., Methods: Patients were screened from the Fragility Fracture Registry. Inclusion criterion was displaced intracapsular hip fracture patients with atypical or pathological fractures excluded. One-year mortality was investigated against risk factors including age, gender, past medical history, pre-fracture mobility (PFM), pre-operation ASA grade, delayed surgery over 48 h, post-surgical complications, and length of stay at acute orthopedic ward (LOS)., Results: A total of 1050 patients were included for further analysis. Gross one-year mortality was 14.9%. One-year mortality was significantly higher in patients who received non-operative treatment and those who received surgery but delayed over 48 h after admission (both p <  0.001). Male gender (OR = 2.708), advanced age (OR = 1.359), higher risk ASA grades (III to V) (OR = 1.990), past history of gastrointestinal disease (OR = 1.671), and renal impairment (OR = 1.984) were related to higher one-year mortality. The mortality of patients in PFM grade 3 and LOS group 3 was significantly higher (OR = 2.240 and 1.722, respectively)., Conclusions: Higher age, male gender, past gastrointestinal disease and renal impairment, ASA grade over 3, indoor confined pre-fracture ambulatory, and stay at hospital over 15 days were risk factors related to higher one-year mortality in surgically treated displaced intracapsular hip fracture patients. A multi-disciplinary approach is advised to patients identified with these risks factors and co-managed by orthopedic surgeons, geriatricians, and fracture liaison nurses.

Introduction: In setting up a disease registry for fragility fractures in Hong Kong, we conducted a retrospective systematic study on the management of fragility hip fractures. Patient outcomes were compared with the standards from our orthopaedic working group and those from the British Orthopaedic Association that runs a mature fracture registry in the United Kingdom., Methods: Clinical data on fragility hip fracture patients admitted to six acute major hospitals in Hong Kong in 2012 were captured. These included demographics, pre- and post-operative assessments, discharge details, complications, and 1-year follow-up information. Analysis was performed according to the local standards with reference to those from the British Orthopaedic Association., Results: Overall, 91.0% of patients received orthopaedic care within 4 hours of admission and 60.5% received surgery within 48 hours. Preoperative geri-orthopaedic co-management was received by 3.5% of patients and was one of the reasons for the delayed surgery in 22% of patients. Only 22.9% were discharged with medication that would promote bone health. Institutionalisation on discharge significantly increased by 16.2% (P<0.001). Only 35.1% of patients attended out-patient follow-up 1 year following fracture, and mobility had deteriorated in 69.9% compared with the premorbid state. Death occurred in 17.3% of patients within a year of surgery compared with 1.6% mortality rate in a Hong Kong age-matched population., Conclusions: The efficiency and quality of acute care for fragility hip fracture patients was documented. Regular geri-orthopaedic co-management can enhance acute care. Much effort is needed to improve functional recovery, prescription of bone health medications, attendance for follow-up, and to decrease institutionalisation. A Fracture Liaison Service is vital to improve long-term care and prevent secondary fractures.

Prostate carcinoma and metastasis are common among male subjects worldwide. CKBM is a drug product targeting prostate cancer in multiple ways. Prostate cancer cell lines PC3 and DU145 were treated with CKBM. The effect of CKBM on the cell's viability, cell cycle, adhesive and invasive properties and its growth in an animal model were assessed. Results indicated that CKBM inhibited PC3 and DU145 cell growth in vitro at IC(50 )values 3.923 and 4.697% respectively, and it brought about cell cycle arrest at G2/M phase. CKBM also attenuated DU145 cells to invade and adhere to extracellular matrices including Matrigel, laminin, fibronectin and collagen IV. Moreover, PC3 tumor xenograft growth was inhibited by over 60% after 28-day of 0.2, 0.4 or 0.8 ml/day CKBM treatment. The present study indicates that CKBM is effective against prostate cancer cell growth in vitro and in vivo. Further studies are required to elucidate its mechanism of action.

The current study investigated the immunomodulating effect of CKBM on cytokine induction in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) isolated from 20 healthy volunteers. Cytometric Bead Analysis (CBA) was used to study IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-10, TNF-alpha and IFN-gamma. TNF-alpha and IL-6 were significantly increased in a CKBM dose- and time-dependent manner. Flow cytometry analysis showed an increased intracellular staining of IL-6 but not of TNF-alpha in CKBM treated PBMCs. In addition, MTT cell cytotoxicity assay showed that CKBM concentrations below 5% did not significantly affect the metabolic activities of PBMCs. The current study indicated that CKBM may modulate the immune response by inducing the secretions of TNF-alpha and IL-6, which are cytokine mediators of innate immunity and inflammation preparing or "priming" the body to combat diseases.

Purpose: This study aims at evaluation of the different prognostic models, including stage, tumor thickness, shape, malignancy grading of tumor invasive front, Martinez-Gimeno score, and pathologic features in the prediction of subclinical nodal metastasis, local recurrence, and survival of early T1 and T2 oral tongue squamous cell carcinoma. The results will have important implication for the management of patients., Patients and Methods: Seventy-two clinically T1 and T2 glossectomy specimens of oral tongue carcinoma were serially sectioned in 3-mm thickness for the evaluation of various pathologic features. The prognostic value in the prediction of subclinical nodal metastasis, local recurrence, and survival of different models were compared., Results: Among all the tumor parameters and predictive models being evaluated, tumor thickness was the only significant factor that had significant predictive value for subclinical nodal metastasis, local recurrence, and survival. With the use of 3-mm and 9-mm division, tumor of up to 3-mm thickness has 8% subclinical nodal metastasis, 0% local recurrence, and 100% 5-year actuarial disease-free survival; tumor thickness of more than 3 mm and up to 9 mm had 44% subclinical nodal metastasis, 7% local recurrence, and 76% 5-year actuarial disease-free survival; tumor of more than 9 mm had 53% subclinical nodal metastasis, 24% local recurrence, and 66% 5-year actuarial disease-free survival., Conclusions: Tumor thickness should be considered in the management planning of patients with early oral tongue carcinoma., (Copyright 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

The aim of this study is to examine the effect of hyperthermia on tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) resistance in L929-11E cells. L929-11E is a TNF-alpha resistant variant derived from L929 cells, a commonly used model for TNF-alpha study. Based on the results from flow cytometry and Western blotting, hyperthermia (43 degrees C, 3 h) was found to induce apoptosis, mitochondrial potential (delta psi(m)) depolarization and release of cytochrome c in L929-11E cells. Similar responses were found in L929 cells when treated with TNF-alpha. Heating at 43 degrees C for 1 h did not significantly damage the mitochondria of L929-11E cells but partially reversed their resistance to TNF-alpha. When L929-11E cells were sequentially treated with heating (43 degrees C, 1 h) and TNF-alpha, a more severe damage in mitochondria was observed. Taken together, our results indicate (1) hyperthermia induced apoptosis in L929-11E cells via mitochondrial damages in a way very similar to the action of TNF-alpha in L929 cells, (2) hyperthermia could be used to overcome TNF-alpha resistance by altering mitochondrial activities and (3) L929-11E and its parental cells provide a useful model in elucidating the signalling linkage between TNF-alpha receptor and mitochondria.

Background: The present study aims at evaluation of the prognostic value of tumor size including diameter, length, thickness, width, area, and volume in the prediction of nodal metastasis, local recurrence, and survival of oral tongue carcinoma. The results will have important implications for the management of patients., Methods: Eighty-five glossectomy specimens of oral tongue carcinoma were serially sectioned in 3 mm thickness for the tumor size evaluation with computer image analyzer., Results: Among all the tumor size parameters being evaluated, tumor thickness was the only significant factor for the prediction of local recurrence, nodal metastasis, and survival. With the use of 3 mm and 9 mm division, tumor of up to 3 mm thickness has 10% nodal metastasis, 0% local recurrence, and 100% 5-year actuarial disease-free survival; tumor thickness of more than 3 mm and up to 9 mm has 50% nodal metastasis, 11% local recurrence, and 77% 5-year actuarial disease free survival; tumor of more than 9 mm has 65% nodal metastasis, 26% local recurrence, and 60% 5-year actuarial disease-free survival., Conclusions: Tumor thickness should be considered in the management of patients with oral tongue carcinoma.

Hyperthermia is a potential anti-cancer regimen but the mode of action is far from clear. Based on the flow cytometric analysis with FITC-annexin V and propidium iodide, apoptosis was found to be the major form of cell death after the treatment with hyperthermia (43 degrees C, 3 h) and/or recombinant murine tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha, 50 ng/ml) in L929 cells. Since mitochondria are thought to play a key role in apoptosis, experiments were done to assess their role in the hyperthermia-mediated apoptosis. Our results indicate that hyperthermia was able to depolarize the mitochondrial membrane potential (delta psi m) and release cytochrome c to the cytoplasm, in a way very similar to the action of TNF-alpha. With the use of cyclosporin A to inhibit the delta psi m dissipation, the cytotoxicity mediated by hyperthermia or TNF-alpha was suppressed. Taken together, our results indicate that hyperthermia and TNF-alpha can induce apoptosis in L929 cells and the mitochondrial dysfunction plays a key role in the cell death process.